An inquiry into the natural world and its laws; the interaction between the natural world (physical and biological) and human societies; how humans use their understanding of scientific principles; and the impact of scientific and technological advances on society and on the environment.

What lines of inquiry will define the scope of the inquiry into the central idea?
● Identifying the Earth’s physical features
● Why the Earth has changed and is continuing to change
● Human responses to Earth’s changes

I always enjoy using technology with students where their reaction is that of pure shock and amazement! With Quiver this is always a first-time reaction whether it be with Kindergarten or Grade 6 Students the reaction is mouth-opening!

As grade 2's latest unit draws to an end I wanted to give them this jaw-dropping feeling!

Enter Quiver!

Grade two girls' colour their Quiver Picture!

They colour their picture. The girls cannot wait to use with the Quiver App

Students are able to take part in an interactive quiz!

Here's a picture of Miyu with her diorama of various landforms.She created the volcano replica on the left.

Listen to Miyu's Screencastify about the grade two unit and the use of Quiver Vision.

I would love to hear your comments about how you have used Quiver in the classroom.

Throughout the first half of the school year, several students have made appointments with me to discuss their online & social media activity. What I've observed is that some of these children have concerns about e-safety, specifically their interactions with strangers via gaming websites (e.g., Minecraft) and phone applications (e.g. LINE). Parents have also articulated their uneasiness about their children's increasing use of technology and their own ignorance regarding how to monitor their safety.

From these discussions described above, the idea was born to start the conversation with grades 3-6 regarding e-safety, to include cyberbullying. While the majority of these students have not yet been exposed to cyberbullying, this is something that they will inevitably witness or fall victim to. As educators, we are also aware of our shared responsibility in teaching our students how to be responsible digital citizens, while being especially attentive to issues surrounding personal safety and the "footprint" that's created each and every time something is texted or posted online.

As a result, 16 presentations were given over the course of 1 week. Mr. Towse and I were clearly aiming for a world record! The students, most notably those from grades 5 and 6, were highly engaged and were willing to share many of their own experiences (both positive and negative) using social media and the internet. It is important to reiterate that many of these applications (Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, etc.) have age restrictions that were created with kids safety in mind. Parents, we ask for your help in ensuring your child is using the internet and social media responsibly and with your careful monitoring, to include limiting their time on their devices.

We look forward to continued discussions about this topic and your feedback on how we can further educate you and your children!

This blog post is the subject of a #techwithtowse weekly blog challenge. This week, the challenge is to write a blog post using no more than 140 words and include images with captions and a movie.

The focus over the last few weeks with kindergarten has been speaking and listening. I wanted to use their current unit to explore ChatterPix Kids, and the results have been fantastic! This app involves a picture and a line to act as a mouth and then audio for up to 30 seconds. ChatterPix is an easier app to use and a great alternative to some the more complex apps such as Morfo and Funny Movie Maker.